Can't Explain

I wish there were words that could describe God justly. There are no such words though so I will just say; I love him and can't believe I get to call him my Father. Thank you God. Lately that is all I have been thinking about.

Happy Birthday Doug !!!!

I just wanted to say HAPPY 22nd Birthday !!!! I miss you so much.

For you Sis

I just want you to know how much I love you and miss you. I can't wait to hang out with you again. I think that you should just jump on a plane and come on down. You are my Joni my only Joni, you make me happy when skies are grey, you never know dear how much I love you please don't take my Joni away. HA HA I know you miss my songs so there you go. Love you sis, I hope to see you soon.

Big Day

Today Chris and I got a call that we got our townhome, we had been wanting it so bad. The townhome is a two bedroom, two bath home. It is newly remodeled it is not even done, we get to move in Dec 1. We had been praying about it for a week now. When we first called about it they did not want pets in the new house, but after meeting with us, they decided to go ahead and allow it. The landlord had 10 other applicants and she thought about the decsion for several days, she called today and said she was happy to rent it to us. I could not believe it. IT is so pretty. New hardwood floors downstairs, new cabinets, and all new appliances. The upstairs is all new carpeting and the bathroom is all new also. We are so excited that God chose this home for us. After getting our home we decided to go donate blood. It took me three and a half years to talk chris into donating. I used to donate off and on, before I had gotten real sick with my heart. I have not been able to donate for two years because of my heart, but because of God's goodness I donated today. I was so excited to be helping people again. I had to keep talking Chris through it, the entire staff at the blood bank was talking to him. He had four women around him just giggling with him and then all the sudden I looked over and he passed out. All the nurses jumped into action and brought him back around. Good news is he is a fast bleeder so they got all they needed before he went out. I felt bad because I could not get up because I still was donating. After waking up the nurses and I told him he has to try it two more times before he can decided if he is never going to do it again. I am so proud of him. He is so scared of blood and needles but he put that aside to help someone else. Chris I am so proud of you baby.

Being used by God

My relationship with God has been steadily growing since moving to Florida, which is a GREAT thing. Last night something happened and it really is still not understood by me all the way because I have never experienced something so powerful. Chris and I were in bed, around 12:30 I had this overwhelming feeling, I can't really explain if it was sadness, pain, anger or what. I just felt the need to cry and I was becoming very uncomfortable. Chris said "you know you need to start praying, in your prayer language." I am still not so sure about tongues, especially because I have only a few words. I was hesitant until the feeling became so overwhelming I did just start praying in tongues. I was praying and was so in touch with just God and this feeling. All of the sudden more words came to me, words I have never heard. I started praying those words with the other and the overwhelming feeling started to leave me. Chris held my hand the entire time I was praying and was praying for me to be able to receive more words, right when he asked this of God I was given more words. All I can say is it was an amazing moment, I hope whomever was needing prayer got it and feels better. Now I feel addicted and can't wait for God to use me again. I have always been very emotional especially when it comes to God and now I think I know why. I don't like feeling uneasy but once God starts using me, there is nothing I would rather be doing. After everything was over Chris and I went to sleep but were awakened with a call around 1:00am, it ended up being a wrong number but after having that feeling something was wrong it was scary to be awakened so fast that late. Anyway I just wanted to share this because it was amazing, and if it was any of you needing the prayer I hope you feel better. I know if probably was for someone I don't even know, which is even more amazing. I can't wait to be used by God in this way again.

A weekend of Relaxation!!!

This is Vegas' cousin Tiger. They were so cute together.

My uncle and Chris in front of the Apache helicopter my uncle flew. He was a pilot of special aircraft in the Army. This is his actual helicopter he flew in Germany.

My aunt and I

Since moving to Orlando Chris and I have not had a weekend for just him and I to relax. He and I have been working every weekend and he has been busy with so much school. We finally just took a weekend and went to my aunt and uncles' house in Alabama. They live in the southern part of Alabama so it only takes 6 hours for us to get there. It was so fun and relaxing. For the first time since moving Chris and I were able to attend church and talk about God all weekend with people. My uncle is a minister at a Methodist church. Even though his church was different then the church we are use to it was just refreshing to hear God's word and to be in an environment that was filled with God. His church has two services, one is more contemporary but it was no were near the type of contemporary service at CFC, but still was pleasant. The second service had about 200 people and was more traditional, still nice also. It was so great to be able to just relax and talk with family. It made me realize how much I miss my church and family. My aunt and uncle recently went to Israel and he spoke in his service about Lazarus' tomb. The sermon really made me realize that life is eternal for believers, which is amazing to think about. It was a great sermon and it was cool to hear about his trip to Israel. Being with great Christian people this weekend really rejuvinated me.

Back to School !!!

After thinking about it for two years and considering all the options I have decided to go back to school. I love being an RN and want to continue being a nurse. I especially love the holistic care of nursing therefore never want to give that part of my job up. I want to go back to school simply to further my education. In order to pursue my career in medicine and to eventually be the type of nurse I want to be I personally want more education. I love knowledge and I want to be as prepared as I can be for my clients and myself therefore more education is needed. I will be going back to either get my Masters degree in Natural Medicine, or to become a doctor of natural medicine. I am not sure which path I want to pursue but either one will provide more education in the direction I want to go. I eventually want to practice natural medicine in oncology patients. Natural medicine includes, basically anything that does not have to do with medications. I believe that the mind is powerful and focusing care on the mind and spiritual aspect can help heal someone or at least ease pain in someone who is sick sometimes better than any medicine can do. I am not an extremist I do believe in the use of medication but just not overdoing it, especially when there are other options. I want to practice natural medicine along with traditional chemotherapy and/or radiation for oncology clients. I may become a doctor I may not but to me that is just a title I will always be an RN at heart and want to focus my care that way, I just want more knowledge.

What it is all about.

Finding out what life is all about is not an easy task. I thought I had everything in my life figured out. I was shocked when God called us to move away, far away from everything I knew. I have been angry, especially because I have not been able to find a church in the place where God called us to go. Well this week it finally started coming to Chris and I why we were brought far away. First Chris and I relied to much on our church back home. We let our church carry us and only our church fed our spiritual needs. Until moving away from the place that was the source of leading our spiritual lives we never realized how much we depended on church and our family of believers. Being away from that has allowed chris and I to depend on ourselves and each other to be the ones leading our spiritual walk. I never use to read the Bible, and felt no need to because I got what I thought I needed at church. Since moving to Florida I can't imagine a day without reading my Bible. Chris and I would rarely pray together and since moving to Florida we pray every day and do devotionals every night together. Yes this could have happened living in Indiana, but I believe we were brought out of our comfort zone to help build our faith. We do not have a stable church, or a group of strong christian friends in Florida, but for once we are both growing strongly in our relationship with God. I can't wait for the day that God says it is time to go back to Indiana, and share all you have learned. I am sure there is more to be learned and there is still more to the reason God called us to Florida. I can't wait to see what else he has to teach Chris and I.

For you Charis!!

Charis this reminded me of you sitting at my house looking up cat videos. Chris and I found this one and immediatley thought of you. Enjoy, and we miss you guys. Love you.

One amazing date!!

Chris and I have not been able to spend much time together since moving to Florida because we both are very busy. Yesterday that changed when we got out of bed and he said come on lets go, we are going to Seaworld. I did not think he would actually take me but five minutes later we were there. I had so much fun, especially because I got to spend an entire day with my husband. I love dolphins so we went to see a dolphin show and it was so amazing. We also got up close enough to pet the dolphins but they were all to busy playing and eating. Because Chris works at Seaworld he knew exactly were to take me and what to see. The day was tiring but so fun. After walking through the park all day Chris got us into his restaurant to see the Hawaiian show. He even got our $100 meal for free, he is great. It was really a fun show. The day was perfect. Chris is going to have trouble topping this date.

Wow!!

First of all there have been a lot of things happening lately, so Chris and I have been very busy. I wanted to thank everyone who prayed for my nephew Easton. He seems to be doing much better after a short stay in the hospital, he is going to be seeing a specialist at Riley sometime soon hopefully. Second, I got another job and had a very interesting day today. I am still going to be working as a nurse but I thought why not get a fun job that does not have anything to do with death. I work at a Golf/Safari place. It is so fun, my job consists of teaching foreigners, with the little Spanish I speak how to play put putt; and about our 25 alligators. Yeah, I know most people don't see me taking care of alligators, but I usually do not have to be around them I just teach people about them and show them how to feed them. Until today that was pretty much all I did. Today a young kid was feeding an alligator and the alligator decided to swallow the entire feeding string that is attached to a stick. I freaked out and called the manager and he said just hold on to the stick as tight as you can and I will be right there. So I was a little scared at this moment but I was trying to hold it in around all the kids you know. So the alligator decided he wanted to try to pull me into the pin, I did not like that idea so I pulled back. I really did not want to go into the pin with 25 alligators so I pulled really hard on the stick and all the string the alligator stupidly swallowed started coming back up. The alligator started choking and finally I managed to pull the string and pole out of the alligators mouth. Once my manager came I told him I was done with the alligators I am sticking to the golf, he laughed at me and told me I still have to teach about the gators. I still love my job!!!
Third of all Chris and I are still searching for a church. It seems hard around this area because many of the churches are Baptist or Catholic. We are praying about it please be in prayer for us. Although we have not been able to find a church we are still growing in the Lord.
One of the most amazing spiritual things I have ever been through occured last night. Chris and I were in bed and I was quietly saying my nightly prayer. All the sudden God said to me speak in tongues and I said to God but I only have a few words, he said "Speak" I had my eyes closed and was speaking the words that were coming to me just to God and not out loud, God said "keep going". Something started happening, I was fully into concentrating in a spiritual mind and I felt a bad presence enter the room, God said "keep speaking." I usually get scared of these types of feelings and give in but I kept praying and the room continued to get heavier and all of the sudden I did not understand it but with my eyes closed I was showed an image of a demon. I have a fear of seeing demons but at this moment I was not afraid at all I was so in tune with God more than ever, that all I could focus on and all I wanted to was God. God said "Do not be afraid, Keep speaking." I continued to pray the only words I could and God became so present that I felt His presence in front of me and the demon just disappeared. After that God said "Wake Chris and pray together." I thought "God has brought me through the worst fear in my life I better listen." So I woke Chris and we prayed, and then talked about what had just happened. I can't explain everything and do not fully understand it all, but I do know this was one of the closest experiences I have ever had with God, and I loved it. He taught me that I don't need to be afraid because he is my Father. It also taught me not to doubt and try to figure out everything in life. I have been so upset that I have not been able to speak more than a few words in tongues but God showed me the words I spoke do mean something and are important for some reason so hold them dear.
OK so I had much to say in this post but thanks for reading and keep Chris and I in your prayers.

Prayer Request

Hello all!! Just need you all to pray for my nephew Easton. Everyone from church may remember Easton, I brought him to church and had him prayed for because he was sick when he was born. He was premature by a month. He has had lung problems ever since. Easton is an amazing baby and my Godson so it is my responsibility to pray for him everyday and be there in his walk with God. Therefore since everyone who reads this is a part of helping me with my walk with God I ask that you would help me by praying that Easton's lungs would be healed and he would not have any more problems in relation to his lungs. He is only a year and has had pneumonia I believe 6 times or more. Please pray for him and his mom and dad. Pray that God would touch his lungs and help him breath easy from this day forward. Thank you. Love you all.

I have a new sister!!!

Chris and I went to Miami for the weekend to my brother's wedding. One of my older brothers Matt got married to a beautiful woman named Wendy. They were married on a Carnival cruise ship going to the Grand Cayman and Jamaica. Our family had the cruise ship all to ourselves for the first three hours, it was so fun. I am so happy for my brother and Wendy, I wish them luck in their marriage. Chris and I discovered while we were in Miami we never want to live there. It is way too big and busy. Congratulations Matt and Wendy, make Chris and I some beautiful nieces and nephews!!!

Thankfullness

I know I have posted about being healed before but in my eyes I could never blog enough or speak enough about what God has done. Today I was driving to pick Chris up from work and it hit me. Sometimes I will be doing some simple activity or what some people consider a simple activity. What I am trying to say is, to some people it is not a big deal to be able to drive, but to me it is. To most it is no big thing to walk a mile with a person they love on a beautiful night, to me it is. To most it is not a big deal to swim in a pool without being afraid of getting to tired to me it is. To most people walking down three flights of stairs instead of taking the elevator is not a big deal but to me it is. To most people it is not a big deal to walk their dog, to me it is. To most they wake up and take a simple shower and don't even think about it, to me I am able to shower and not have to rest afterwards. I could go on all day long telling you these types of things but what I am trying to say is simple every day things are miracles to me. They may seem like small things to some and things that people do without even thinking but for me I smile each time I do little things like this because my God healed me and I can once again do such simple things. I just wake each day still thanking God for what he has done, and every single day at a moment when I least expect it I just look at Chris and say do you remember when I could not do such and such, he will say yes and then we both just thank God. I want to encourage anyone who needs God to move in their life that God works in his own time and be thankful whenever he does touch you and never forget to say thank you. I really never thought I would be healed but now that I am I feel awful for doubting my God. So I will spend every day thanking him and speaking my testimony to show him my gratefulness. Thank you Father for my healing, thank you for letting me see what living life really means.

We met a friend????

Chris and I were taking our nightly walk around our neighborhood. We were startled when a police officer pulled up next to us, I thought what did we do? He started asking about Vegas and was very interested in getting a dog like him. He has a narcotic dog but his dog is retiring soon because of age. The simple subject of dogs brought us to talk with this man for a couple of hours. He pulled into a nearby parking lot and spoke with Chris and I about many subjects. Some of the topics scared us because he was telling us all the bad places in Orlando and where to stay away from. He took our names to call us about some housing information in his apartment complex. The conversation seemed to never end and he was talking with me about personal stuff when he found out I was an oncology nurse. I found out he had even had a prostate exam, which I did not want to know. So after that subject Chris and I decided we would try to politely excuse ourselves and continue our walk, but every time we tried to excuse ourselves some new subject would pop up and he would talk for another 10 minutes. We wanted to just walk away at some points in the conversation but he was a cop and I would like to stay in good with our neighborhood police officers. By the end of the conversation we came to the conclusion this guy was just really bored. It was an interesting nightly walk.

We Made It !!!

Chris and I arrived in Orlando FL two days ago. We are getting our apartment all arranged and it is going to be cute, well at least I think so. Yesterday it was so nice out it was 92 and sunny until about four and then all of the sudden down pour. It rained the rest of the night, non-stop, which was OK because I love the rain. Living in Orlando I get the best of both worlds my beautiful sunny days and my rainy nights. Today we have just been running around, and swimming at the pool. The weather channel is saying we are going to be getting another tropical storm. It has not turned into a hurricane yet but could. I am a little excited to go through our first storm, but a little scared. If you could all just keep Chris and I in your prayers, we are trying to find a church and we really hope to find one fast. Please just be praying that God will open up the doors wide at the church we are suppose to call home, we really want our new church to have similar beliefs and practices as CFC so please pray that a church would be brought to us. Have a great Labor Day.

YES!!!!

Thanks for your prayers for my dad he had surgery and it went great. He feels so much better he stayed a few days in the hospital and is now home. My trip to Florida for the day was so tiring. I had to fly out at 5:50 in the morning and then I had a lay over in Atlanta for two hours but my plane got delayed even longer so I spent three hours by myself in the airport at Atlanta, which was not very fun. Then I had my interview and my hospital was amazing. It is only three years old and it is so neat. After the interview I caught a cab back to the airport. I was just ready to get home to Chris but then, when I got to Atlanta my plane was delayed several hours due to the terriorst stuff happening. The alarms went off in the airport and everyone in the airport had to stand still because they said we all had to be cleared due to security reasons. So my flight did not get in to Indiana until the early morning. I was so tired, but all that was worth it because today I recieved a call from my hospital and they offered me the job, plus they offered me more money because my interview went so well. I start September 5!!!!!!

Please Pray

My dad has heart issues and he has for a long time. He had his first open heart surgery when he was 36 and he has had 10 or more heart caths. He has not been feeling well lately and went for his routine yearly stress test and the doctor did not like the results therefore he is going in tomorrow morning for another heart cath. His heart is not that strong and they already know he needs surgery but they have tried to put it off for as long as possible because of the risk and because his heart has already been through one major surgery. So tomorrow they will find out when they are going to perform surgery or they will see if they can just fix his heart enough during the cath and maybe that will hold for another year. My dad is a strong man and he is a believer and says he is ok but I can tell he is scared of the unknown. Please just pray for his heart cath and that God would work in him to repair the damage in his heart. I know God gave me a new heart and I would love to see that happen for my dad. My dad means the world to me, I love him so much please just keep him in your prayers. Thanks for your prayers.

I found an exciting job!!!

Ok so sorry everyone that I have not been writing but I have been kind of busy. So anyway, I thought I was going to work at Arnold Palmer childrens hosptial in Florida and I was excited but then I recieved a call the next day about another job I had applied for. It is at M.D. Anderson Center, it is an Oncology hospital. They treat all ages for cancers and that is the field of nursing I am interested in. I eventually want to work in children's oncology but this just opened up and I truly believe for right now this is where I am supposed to be. I had two phone interviews and the lady really liked me, so I am flying down on Wednesday just for a few hours to interview in person and to see the hospital. They are getting ready to open a brand new chemothearpy and radiation wing and want me to help get it started. I was also able to express my future goal of becoming an alternative medicine oncology nurse and they loved the idea and have a team in place that they want me to work with, HOW GREAT!!!! The only bad part of my job is I was informed I will also be working with families that are in hospice and need end of life care, this is sad for me but I believe I can do it because God has called me into this type of nursing for a reason. I am scared about being all alone in Orlando for the day without my strong man by my side but I am not scared about the interview I can nail that and the flight is the fun part. So anyway, just pray that I will be ok without Chris and pray that God will reveal if this is the right path for me. Have a great day everyone. I promise I will work on posting more.

Another Weekend At the Roberts !!!!

So I know I have not been blogging lately but it is because I have been very busy and really do not like the computer. So anyway Chris and I have been very busy this month because we are preparing for the move to Florida. I am so excited I can't wait. Because of our upcoming move we have been trying to spend some quality time with people. For the past couple of weekends Joni and Johnathan have been so nice to Chris and I by opening up their house for us to come stay with them to spend time with them. Our weekends with Johnathan and Joni have been so great and it makes me realize how much I am going to truly miss them. They are like a brother and sister to Chris and I and it makes me sad to think about leaving them. Joni is so great to me and I can't imagine not having her in my life, she is the meaning of a true friend. Johnathan is just like another one of my brothers he like Joni is a true friend. This weekend Chris and I watched the kids while Joni and Jonathan went to King's Island, it was a great weekend. I love Chase and Brenna, they are very well behaved kids and are very fun. We all went swimming and then went to Indianapolis. Spending the day with them made me realize how much I love them and I don't want to leave them. We have so many memories with Johnathan and Joni and I hope that even though we are moving far away we will still make more memories. It is a privilege to be friends with the Roberts. I hope the future only brings more weekends at the Roberts or even occasional a weekend at the Jordans down in Florida.